


The Stars

by FlamingKookie



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-27
Updated: 2018-02-05
Packaged: 2019-03-09 22:03:02
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,159
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13490691
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FlamingKookie/pseuds/FlamingKookie
Summary: Jongin, Kyungsoo, Chanyeol, and Baekhyun are mercenaries who travel the galaxy on their ship, El Dorado, and do jobs for money. For all the trouble they find themselves in, and as often they can't manage to keep their hands off each other, they just might save humanity along the way.Kim Jongin- The Sniper/TechnicianDo Kyungsoo- The Gunner/ArmorerPark Chanyeol- The Pyro/PilotByun Baekhyun- The Talker/AssassinRated M for explicit violence, drug and alcohol abuse, explicit sexual descriptions, disturbing descriptions, and high quantity of cursing.Will be made in an episodic manner with each chapter being an independent story.





	1. Prologue

The sounds of the ship were dull and Park Chanyeol sat in the pilot’s seat while watching the sharp lines of stars passing by as they traveled at FTL (Faster than Light) speed. He leaned back in his seat and relished the quiet as he lit a cigarette and took a heavy drag before exhaling the smoke from his nostrils. It had been a while since he’d found such clean tobacco. A soft smile spread across his face as he closed his eyes with the cigarette dangling between his lips and the gentle wisp of smoke rising in front of his face. He could really go for some fried chicken and a beer. The sweet silence was then broken as he heard a pair of footsteps approaching and suddenly stop just within the entryway to the cockpit. Chanyeol took another deep drag of the cigarette and exhaled with a large billow of smoke.

“Ever think of quitting?” the gentle voice behind him asked. Chanyeol spun his chair around using his long leg and then crossed before taking another deep puff and looked straight into Baekhyun’s eyes. Baekhyun smiled and was leaning against the wall by the entryway with his arms crossed. He was wearing his typical black sweatpants and grey t-shirt.

“Ever think of cutting your hair?” Chanyeol asked with smoke seething out from between his teeth. Baekhyun’s smile grew a bit as one of his hands came up to toy with some of the black locks that hung over his ear.

“I heard you liked my hair like this,” Baekhyun retorted and Chanyeol let a coy smile spread across his lips.

“I heard you thought I looked sexy with a smoke in my hand.” The two of them looked at each other and Baekhyun got up from leaning against the wall and walked over to where Chanyeol was sitting.

“And how many beers did Jongin have before he slipped that one out?” Baekhyun asked as he slid onto Chanyeol’s lap and put his arms around Chanyeol’s neck. In a playful manner, Chanyeol raised an eyebrow and gave an over exaggerated look of questioning.

“I think it was somewhere after the fourth hour,” Chanyeol finally said as he took another drag of his smoke and let the smoke trickle out from the edges of his lips while looking at Baekhyun. Baekhyun leaned in and took a deep breath, some of the smoke that came from Chanyeol’s mouth.

“This better be the clean stuff,” Baekhyun said as he exhaled the little bit of smoke from his own nostrils. Chanyeol smiled and pulled out the pack of cigarettes. Baekhyun checked the packet and then put his head into Chanyeol’s shoulder. “Good. I don’t need you getting cancer.”

“You act like it could kill me.”

“It used to, you dolt,” Baekhyun snapped playfully and kissed Chanyeol’s throat. “I don’t want anything bad happening to you.”

“Says the guy whose mouth gets us into trouble and I have to blow things up to get us out of it.”

“At least with that we have Jongin and Kyungsoo to help. If you got cancer…”

“I’d go to a doctor and have it cleared up in an hour,” Chanyeol said soothingly and let his hand run comfortably through Baekhyun’s hair. Baekhyun pulled back and looked him in the eyes. He hated it when Baekhyun worried. “I’m not going anywhere,” Chanyeol said quietly and gave a small smile. Chanyeol didn’t stop smiling until he saw one cross Baekhyun’s face and they both laughed softly as they held each other. He punctuated the ease in tension with a firm spank to Baekhyun’s ass which earned him a sharp yelp from the smaller boy. “Now get up, my leg’s falling asleep.”

“No fun,” Baekhyun whined as he slid off of Chanyeol and forced Chanyeol’s legs apart so he could squeeze onto the small expanse of chair that he could sit on. He let his body rest back against Chanyeol’s chest as the chair rotated back around to face the passing stars. “When are we supposed to reach Raegal?” he asked as he let his fingers entwine with Chanyeol’s.

“In about two hours,” Chanyeol responded quietly as he snuffed the cigarette and tossed the butt into the disposal burner.

“You think the buyer is going to show up?”

“Better. We’ve got three tons of Black Salt they’ve got to take off our hands.” Baekhyun sighed and simply lay there to enjoy the time with his boyfriend and fellow mercenary. This job had been eerily easy for something involving a high quantity of high quality spice. They hadn’t even come across any faux ‘inspectors’ in the six days since they departed Akara. A part of Baekhyun wanted to take Chanyeol to their bed quarters but he knew they couldn’t just leave the ship unattended when they were so close to their destination. Disappointed that he hadn’t managed to snag Chanyeol the night prior had Baekhyun left feeling unfulfilled but he took what he could in these moments. The simply enjoyment of being with Chanyeol wrapped Baekhyun in a warmth that enveloped him thoroughly. When sleep took him, he didn’t realize it. Baekhyun only found out he was taken in his sleep when he was awoken by Chanyeol nudging him in the cheek. “Time to get up. We are twenty minutes out.” Baekhyun groaned and sat up as he tried to wipe the sleep from his eyes. “Tell Kyungsoo and Jongin.” An even louder groan of protest left Baekhyun’s mouth but he got up and began to shuffle out of the cockpit, through the lounge area, down the quarters hallway and opened the soundproof door without even bothering to knock. The aroma of sex and humidity were only as obvious as the heavy moans and thudding that resonated in his ears.

“We’re twenty minutes out,” Baekhyun snapped and the thudding ceased as Jongin looked around, his sweat covered bare back dripping with the fruits of his efforts. The bedsheets had long since been discarded and Baekhyun could see Jongin’s perky little ass facing him while Jongin was sheathed fully in Kyungsoo. Kyungsoo looked out from behind Jongin, his hair a tangled mess and his face flushed with effort.

“Use…the fucking…intercom…” Kyungsoo panted before he was cut off by Jongin resuming his hip rotations.

“You better be ready,” Baekhyun said as he went to leave the sight behind.

“Close the door!” Jongin shouted but Baekhyun ignored it as he went to his own room to get ready. Once he managed to flush the heat within his own body that yearned for Chanyeol, he stripped out of his clothes and found his formal getup. Once in his boxers he found the tight fitting anti-kinetic ballistic shirt and put it over his bare torso. The midnight black three piece suit with white silk button up and black tie fit him perfectly, as always, and he styled his hair simply but professionally with it slightly slicked back. He slipped into his black leather shoes and grabbed his shoulder holster, put it on, and grabbed his two Daewoo DP51 pistols, loaded them, put them on safety, and holstered them. He finished the getup by putting on his suit jacket and buttoning the top button. He looked in the mirror and exhaled. That’s when the intercom turned on.

_We are approaching Raegal. Get ready, guys._

Baekhyun looked back at the reflection in the mirror of himself as the sound of Chanyeol’s words faded away.

“Time to go to work,” Baekhyun whispered and walked out of his bed quarters.


	2. The Delivery

Baekhyun stood in the loading area and waited for the ramp to open. He waited impatiently as he heard familiar footsteps behind him. He turned around to see Jongin and Kyungsoo in their gear. Jongin wore his combat fatigues with ballistic armor and bandanna over his head to cover his hair while his eyes were covered with sunglasses. Kyungsoo was wearing his plated mech combat armor with his helmet completely covering his skull and had his large Daewoo K3 Machine Gun in his hand. Baekhyun looked at the two of them and raised an eyebrow.

“I’m surprised you’re standing right now, Kyungsoo,” he said with a stinging tone and a chuckle.

“Fuck you,” Kyungsoo’s echoed voice came out from the helmet in a robotic tone and he shouldered the machine gun easily with the strength given to him by the armor itself. Jongin gave a quick smack to Kyungsoo’s rear, which emitted a loud pang of skin on metal, and the heavily armored Kyungsoo turned to look at him. A big smile was across Jongin’s lips as he raised his shoulders and offered an ‘it’s all in good fun’ face.

“Do you think we’re going to need the full armory?” Baekhyun asked as he saw that not only did Kyungsoo have his machine gun but Jongin had his Motiv K14 sniper rifle on his back.

“We can’t go out in our pajamas,” came the deep voice that Baekhyun had been seeking out. He looked over to see Chanyeol emerging in his own combat fatigues with his utility belt, a few grenades, and his K7 submachine gun slung over his shoulder. Baekhyun also noticed the forearm sized miniature computer clasped from his wrist to his elbow.

“Thinking there’ll be trouble?” Baekhyun asked as the four of them felt the ship lower and Chanyeol tapped a few buttons on his forearm computer to lower the ramp.

“You’re the talker,” Chanyeol said with a small laugh, “You tell me.” Baekhyun exhaled.

“I don’t like the feeling of this one. It was too easy,” Baekhyun admitted as he watched the ramp lower and finally hit the ground as a heavy breeze washed over them.

“We took all the proper precautions,” Kyungsoo’s robotic echoing voice said from his helmet. Baekhyun sighed as he took the first steps down the ramp.

“When has that ever helped us in the past?” Baekhyun asked.

“This isn’t making any of us feel better,” Jongin called out over the heavy wind as they descended the ramp and finally walked out onto the massive cement platform that was encased in a safe terraformed sphere of land. Chanyeol turned around and looked at the tall, metallic, humanoid robot that stood with the delivery ready to be brought down. The robot had been built by Chanyeol by a large collection of spare parts and devices and now helped him repair the ship as well as do much of the heavy lifting for them.

“Stay here, EXO, until we call for you.” The robot gave a small nod of understanding and watched them depart. A short distance away, they could see the ship of the buyers and a few figures standing by their own ramp.

“This wind may fuck with my accuracy,” Kyungsoo said to them all.

“Then let’s avoid all that,” Baekhyun said as he tried to hide the anxiety in his voice. He felt a hand on his shoulder and could tell just from the forearm computer that it was Chanyeol.

“We’ll be alright. Just relax.” Chanyeol then lit a dark blue flare and threw it. It landed right between the two ships and when they noticed the buyers begin to walk towards it, they started to walk themselves. The walk seemed to take forever as they kept their eyes on the quickly advancing buyers.

“They’ve got some armor,” Kyungsoo said and Baekhyun noticed that indeed there were two figures who had a similar mech suit along with some heavy machine guns in their grasps. “It’s newer.”

“Gotta be rich to get all this black salt,” Baekhyun said.

“They don’t have any range that I can see,” Jongin said as he carried his rifle.

“Their ship doesn’t seem to have much in firepower either,” Chanyeol said in agreement.

“Guys, stop sizing them up,” Baekhyun hissed.

“You know they’re doing the same,” Jongin retorted as he fixed his sunglasses.

“Shut up,” Baekhyun said with finality and they remained silent until the faint blue glow of Chanyeol’s flare illuminated around them and they were less than ten feet away. The buyers had two heavily armored and armed soldiers, someone who wore a white coat akin to a doctor who had two large dufflebags in his hands, and there was a man in a black military uniform with a leather double-breasted trench coat and his head covered by a commander’s hat. Immediately, Baekhyun noticed the insignia on the commander’s sleeve.  _Fuck. The Empire._  Baekhyun stopped and looked at the commander.

“Hello,” the commander said and raised a hand in greeting. He didn’t smile but his tone wasn’t threatening. Baekhyun nodded in return.

“I take it you’re Heinrich?” Baekhyun asked cautiously. The commander gave a curt nod and stood at attention.

“Heinrich Hollen,” the commander said in a presentative manner.

“I didn’t know you were with the Empire,” Baekhyun said and he could sense that his friends noticed this blunt detail as well.

“We all have our duties to fulfill in the grand scheme,” Heinrich said, his heavy accent occasionally hard to understand. “I take it you have the salt?”

“We do,” Baekhyun responded. The wind seemed to pick up heavily around them. Heinrich offered a strange smile and held out his arms.

“May I see it?”

“It’s on the ship,” Chanyeol said and raised his forearm computer but the two heavily armored soldiers quickly aimed their weapons at him.

“No need for that,” Heinrich said in an eerily calm voice as he motioned his hand for them to lower their weapons. The soldiers did, slowly. Baekhyun eyed the soldiers’ guns. Obviously heavy machine guns but these seemed new. Hot off the press. He prayed his anti-kinetic armor could endure such rounds if he took a shot. Quickly he turned his attention back to the discussion at hand.

“Have EXO bring it here,” Baekhyun said and Chanyeol looked at him. The look told Baekhyun that Chanyeol was feeling the insecurity but he pressed a few buttons on the touchscreen of his forearm computer and lowered his arm. They waited in silence, the heavy wind whipping at both Baekhyun’s suit jacket and Heinrich’s leather trench coat. He was surprised the black commander’s hat stayed on the man’s head. No more than two minutes could have passed but it felt like an eternity as they then heard the robotic feet behind them and they turned to see the large, skeletal looking robot pulling the anti-gravity transport slab which held all of the black salt as if he were leading a dog on its leash. The robot EXO, Electronic Xenomorphic Optimizer, lowered the large transporter and lowered the shield to reveal the numerous massive boxes within. Heinrich approached the boxes and Baekhyun cut him off with his voice. “Where’s the money?” Heinrich looked at him, almost with a shocked look on his face that said he wasn’t accustomed to being told to stop.

“Doctor,” Heinrich said without much care as he turned back to the boxes. The man in the white coat placed the two large dufflebags on the ground before the soldiers each kicked one over to them. Jongin stepped forward, knelt down, and opened the bag. Chanyeol raised his forearm computer and a quick green light scanned over the two bags.

“It’s real,” Chanyeol said to Baekhyun as Jongin zipped the bags back up and tossed them over to EXO. Heinrich opened one of the boxes, ran his gloved hand through the black powder, and scanned it with a small scanner in his hand.

“Impressed,” Heinrich said simply as he let the black salt slip through his fingers and back into the box before he closed it.

“Then that concludes our business,” Baekhyun says, all too eager to get back to the ship and as far away from these men as possible.

“Is there any particular reason why I should let you all go? You are, without question, criminals to the Empire,” Heinrich said with a sharp glare in his eyes as he returned to stand in front of his two soldiers.

“We did our part. Don’t be such a stereotypical Empirical soldier,” Jongin said quickly and with some harshness. Baekhyun wanted to punch him. Heinrich’s stone faced glare broke up and his lips spread into a smile which built into a laugh.

“You have some spunk,” he said as he began to alleviate his laughter. The mysterious commander named Heinrich waved his hand at them. “Get out of here.” Baekhyun didn’t hesitate and gave a quick nod before he turned and proceeded to the ship. EXO picked up the two large bags and began to walk back towards the ship when suddenly they heard a roaring sound over the fierceness of the wind. Both parties turned their heads to see three ships flying in from beyond the terraformed atmosphere.

“Friends of yours?” Baekhyun asked quickly and turned to Heinrich. Heinrich shook his head.

“Not mine.” He turned his head to Baekhyun. “Yours?” Baekhyun shook his head.

“Pirates,” Jongin growled as he unslung his rifle from his shoulder and loaded it. The three pirate ships opened fire on them and the only thing that saved them was both Heinrich and Chanyeol’s kinetic barriers that they put up just seconds before. Kyungsoo grabbed Baekhyun and heaved him onto his shoulder. EXO rushed to the ship while the pirate ships passed overhead and made a move to turn around and make another run at them. Heinrich’s soldiers began to fire their weapons at the ships but seemed to have little effect as Heinrich and the man known as the Doctor proceeded back to the ship with the black salt at a walking pace with the doctor holding the leash.

“Get back to the ship!” Baekhyun shouted at Chanyeol while Jongin covered their retreat, ensuring the Empirical Soldiers didn’t open fire on them. Chanyeol held up the kinetic barrier which emanated from his forearm computer and he pressed a few buttons.

“Everyone get your heads down!” Chanyeol screamed and Baekhyun was about to scream what the hell he was doing when suddenly their ship, The El Dorado, let out a quick mechanical whir, and the anti-aircraft guns unfolded and opened fire into the skies. The fierce pounding of heavy shells unloading at the enemy ships could be felt deep within their chests. Most of the shots barely missed as the pirate ships veered in the sky to try and escape the attack but one of them was hit twice. The ship, lacking any sort of barrier or shielding, was hit directly and the screech of metal as the engines gave out roared through the skies. They ran as fast as they could as the ship crashed into the cement where their meeting had been taking place just ten minutes prior and they were all flung from their feet from the explosion.

“Fuck…” Kyungsoo grimaced as he heaved himself back up and grabbed Baekhyun by the belt.

“I can run myself, asshole!” Baekhyun shouted as he swatted Kyungsoo’s hand away and got to his feet. They then heard what sounded like commands being given followed by loud whoops of joy and Baekhyun saw men jumping out from the pirate ships in mech suits. “We got company!” Baekhyun shouted as he pulled out his pistols. He fired both pistols and was thankful to see that they also lacked kinetic shields and the rounds managed to punch into a few of the weak spots.

“Get down!” Kyungsoo yelled and Baekhyun leapt to the side just as Kyungsoo unloaded his K3 machine gun at them. The rounds tore through the older mech suits and a few of the men fell but the others raised their guns and fired. Chanyeol jumped between both Kyungsoo and Baekhyun before he pulled up a kinetic shield that stopped the rounds in place.

“It’s time…we leave…” Chanyeol panted as he struggled to control the anti-aircraft guns with his computer. The abuse his computer systems were taking with all the sudden multitasking suddenly shut down the kinetic barrier in front of them. Both Baekhyun and Chanyeol shifted behind Kyungsoo and Kyungsoo let out a grunt as he was struck with several rounds but they failed to puncture his suit. They continued to back up, Kyungsoo firing at the men, the El Dorado shooting at the pirate ships which were also returning fire with their own machine guns, and the Empirical ship had retracted its ramp and was beginning to hover into the air, their own anti-aircraft guns firing into the sky. Kyungsoo shot down a few more pirates but his armor was struggling to hold together against the barrage of bullets.

“Give me a fucking hand, Chanyeol!” Kyungsoo roared as his gun went empty and he reached for a new belt of ammo from his pack. There was then a sharp pang as one of the pirates was struck in the neck with a powerful shot and blood burst out in a fierce spray. Baekhyun turned and saw Jongin laying down atop the ramp with his eyes down the sights of his rifle.

“Let’s! Go!” Jongin shouted at them as he fired again and struck another pirate, this time in the head and splattered it in a mess of bone and gore. Chanyeol and Baekhyun ran to the ramp, bullets from the attacking pirate ships tearing up the cement around them while Chanyeol ran and focused on the anti-aircraft weaponry. Kyungsoo reloaded his gun, slapped the top down and yelled as he released a barrage of heavy fire upon the shocked pirates. Kyungsoo’s barrage and Jongin’s precise shots forced the pirates into running but many were cut down as Kyungsoo walked backwards to the ship.

The two other ships suddenly were overhead and he saw several men jump from the ship in mech suits on top of the El Dorado. “They’re on the ship!” Baekhyun screamed as he reloaded his pistols and ran up the ramp into the ship along with Kyungsoo. Chanyeol was right behind him and Chanyeol raised the ramp once Kyungsoo was on it. He then activated the autopilot from his forearm computer and ran into the storage area as well. The ship began to rise and all but Kyungsoo fell to their feet from the suddenness of it. They began to proceed towards the edge of the terraformed sphere when they all managed to leave the storage area and into the living quarters. There was suddenly a sound of hissing and they all turned up to see sparks flying out from the ceiling, over the kitchen table.

“They’re cutting their way in,” Chanyeol said right before the circle they cut out fell away and exposed several men in mech suits glaring down at them from behind their robotic eyes. Kyungsoo opened fire with his heavy machine gun but there was a bright illumination as these soldiers had shielding and they leapt down through the hole and into the living quarters. Kyungsoo continued to fire but Chanyeol grabbed him by the shoulder and motioned for him to get into the back. The pirates aimed their rifles just before Chanyeol tossed a small ball between the two of them. The ball illuminated and electrical discharge cascaded around the two of them. Their shielding dissipated and Kyungsoo let out a robotic yell as he unloaded his K3. The rounds cut through the old mech suits easily and both pirates collapsed dead to the ground. Silence prevailed and soon all they could hear was the fierce wind from outside due to the hole in their ship. Chanyeol ran a hand through his hair and quickly opened his communication device on his forearm computer. “EXO, bring scrap. We need to plug this if we’re going to get out of here.”

“Great,” Jongin said with frustration as he reloaded his rifle. “Come on, Baek. Let’s help him out.” Baekhyun sighed and proceeded to follow Jongin. They were almost at the storage area when something came out and slammed into Jongin. It was another mech suited pirate. Jongin coughed up blood as a heavy fist collided into Jongin’s stomach and sent him crashing to the ground. Baekhyun quickly drew his two pistols and fired but the bullets were met with another kinetic shield. Jongin quickly turned and aimed his rifle but the barrel was smacked up by the pirate and the shot instead fired into the ceiling. A gauntleted punch slammed into Jongin’s face and Jongin spit up blood before he was kicked away and crashed to the ground. Before the pirate could turn, Baekhyun leapt onto his back and gripped the bulky helmet with one of his pistols between his teeth. He didn’t have the firepower to punch through the shields but shields were useless against hand to hand combat. He gripped the helmet firmly and pressed the removal button. The helmet popped off and he threw it to the ground as the pirate rushed backwards and slammed Baekhyun into the wall. Baekhyun took the pistol from between his teeth, placed it against the pirate’s head, and fired. The warm spatter of blood on his face was only a portion of what was painted across the wall. The pirate collapsed to the ground and Baekhyun fell with him in a tired pile. In that moment, Kyungsoo appeared in the archway of the hallway and saw what happened.

“Are you guys alright?” he asked as he gripped the pirate and heaved him off Baekhyun. Baekhyun nodded as he coughed heavily and Kyungsoo checked on Jongin.

“I had him…” Jongin mumbled as he was clearly dazed from the harsh impact the pirate’s fist had with his head.

“Sure,” Kyungsoo said in a patronizing manner as he inspected Jongin’s head wound. It was minor. “He’s concussed but he’ll be fine.” Kyungsoo dropped Jongin to the ground and walked over him to proceed to the storage area to help EXO. Baekhyun followed and they let Jongin regain his senses on his own.

Chanyeol sat in the pilot’s seat and maneuvered through the air with a long string of fanciful and creative curses sliding off his tongue as he avoided enemy fire and tried to return his own. His shielding was heavily damaged and some of the rounds had punched through and done further damage to the armor itself.

“Come on, baby,” Chanyeol whispered to the ship as he pulled away from another string of shots aimed for the cockpit itself. There was a loud crashing from the lounge area.

“Fly this fucking thing straight!” shouted Kyungsoo and Chanyeol turned around to see Kyungsoo, now out of his mech suit, hanging from the ceiling with his hands on the edges of the hole they were trying to fix while the rest of them were crashed on the ground with the steel plate in their hands. EXO stood there looking down at them quizzically with its blank white eyes.

“You give it a fucking try then!” Chanyeol shouted back as he dove down to try and circle behind the enemy ships. He rolled the ship to avoid several more rounds but felt the shielding lose even more power. Then, there they were. He clicked the fire buttons and four missiles flew out before colliding into the pirate ship and it tore into massive debris. With a quick check, he noticed this seemed to deter the other ship from trying any further and instead flew beyond the terraformed sphere and burst away at FTL speed. Chanyeol sighed and did a quick scan for the Empirical ship but it was gone. He finally let his body relax as he fell into his piloting chair and heard more grumbles coming from the lounge area. Chanyeol turned to see Kyungsoo still clinging to the ceiling as the others got up. EXO reached up and grabbed Kyungsoo around the waist before lowering him down. With that, EXO took the steel plate, raised it to the hole, and began to weld it on with its finger torch.

“Why didn’t we think of that before…?” Jongin whined as he watched the robot easily fix the hole. Chanyeol, upon seeing the hole was fixed, he did a quick check of the ship for any potential leaks. When he was certain that there weren’t any, he gave a small prayer of thanks before setting the coordinates and throwing the ship into FTL speed. With that, they were gone.


	3. The Chase

Bullets tore up the ground around him as Jongin rushed down the hillside with his rifle in hand.

“Shit, shit, shit, shit!” he grunted as the bullets threw debris into the air, almost clouding his view. A shot, different from the others, punched right into his kinetic shield and sent him clear off his feet and slamming into a nearby ditch. Jongin landed with a hard grunt as he lost his grip on his rifle and it scattered a few feet away. After shaking his head from the impact, he checked his communicator while he had the cover of the ditch. “Anyone there?!” he shouted over the sound of the gunfire. All he got was static. “Fuck…” he grimaced before he yelped and ducked his head from a fresh barrage of gunfire. “That’s it!” he shouted as he pulled out his Sig Sauer P226 pistol and peeked out from the lip of the ditch. Two of the pursuing soldiers were approaching. He quickly fired two rounds and each found their target, right between the soldiers’ eyes. Both men dropped and Jongin ducked his head quickly as a sniper round struck just a foot from his head and got dirt in his eyes. Once he cleared his eyes he grabbed his rifle and was about to look back out of the ditch when he saw something land within the ditch. He looked at it and it took him a second to register what it was. The grenade exploded and it was only the torn remnants of his shielding and armor that saved him as he was sent clear out of the ditch and slammed to the ground almost five feet away. All he could hear was the ringing in his ears as he shuddered within his armor. He didn’t move. He was out in the open. No cover. No shields. No nothing. But no bullets filled him. So he remained motionless. Gradually his hearing returned and he could hear approaching footsteps as well as whispered conversations.

“He dead?”

“Seems to be.”

“Good throw, Noh.”

“Thanks.” Jongin finally heard them stop just a few feet away. In his ear he heard the sound of his shields return to 100%. He quickly sat up and saw the three soldiers’ faces shift from smirks to shock as he fired a round into each of their heads. A powerful sniper round struck his shielding and he was sent skidding back once again but he rolled with it and initiated his armor’s computer to register the direction of the bullet. It quickly displayed the path of the bullet through his eye scanner and he followed it as he ran behind a tree. Another round struck the tree just as he got behind it and the round passed clean through the tree and missed his waist by inches. With a heavy breath, Jongin converted all of his shields to his front and stepped out from behind the tree with his rifle aimed. A third round struck the shielding and it shattered but all three of the previous shots had been registered and led his eye right to where he wanted it. He could see the glistening sunlight on the opposing sniper’s scope. He aimed, exhaled, and fired. The round struck home but he saw that it hit shielding of its own and the sniper quickly rolled out of sight.

“Fuck…” Jongin scowled as he ran while the sniper’s vision was off him. Only the sound of his breathing filled his ears as he continued to run deep into the woods. Once again he checked his communicator but still there was nothing coming from any of it. After what felt like almost an hour, Jongin collapsed by a river and tried to catch his breath as he pulled his bandanna off to let his sweat soaked hair free. The weight of his combat armor had only made the running even more difficult and his fatigues were almost entirely soaked through. He gave a quick scan of the surrounding area and found no pursuing heat signatures. With at least some time to rest, Jongin scaled one of the tallest trees he could find and hung his rifle from one of the branches while he let his head fall back against the hefty trunk. After taking a few heavy breaths he pulled off the scanner from his head and let it fall in his lap. The exhaustion that filled his body was beyond any recent fatigue he could compare it to. If the job hadn’t turned into such a shit show he would be back on the ship, annoying Kyungsoo to his heart’s content. But for now, his eyes were too heavy to even think. So instead he slept. He kept his shields on.

He was thankful that he did because he was awoken to the feeling of a round striking his shields and he was almost knocked clean from his tree. It was nighttime now and he quickly fumbled for his rifle before putting on his scanner. A second round struck his shields and he was knocked down but managed to prevent himself from falling further by grabbing a branch. “You…fucker…” he grimaced as he tried to get down from the tree while another round whizzed right by him. He scanned the area and saw that there were no soldiers on the ground. He searched but the area he predicted the shots had come from were scrambled and he couldn’t pinpoint an exact location. This guy was good. Without the sun to try and find a reflection off the scope only left Jongin even more in the dark than before. So he ran. He ran as best as he could but a round struck his shielding from behind and finally punched through. Jongin let out a gasp as he felt the round pass clean through his armor and into the flesh just below his ribs. He dropped to the ground in a weak pile as blood spattered across the stones of the river’s shore. His rifle was heavy in his weak grip. Another round fired and this one sank clean through his armor and tore into his shoulder. He gasped as he writhed in pain and began to lose feeling in his limbs. No longer able to hold his rifle, he let it fall from his hands and his head dropped to the ground. When no third round came, he activated his healing unit within his armor using the button on his glove. The numbing euphoria of sealing gel spreading across his body eased his breathing as he heard footsteps approaching.

“I know you’re alive,” came the voice. He slowly rolled onto his back with a pained grunt, gel spilling from the holes in his armor the enemy sniper’s rifle had put in them. The figure was in black combat fatigues and was equipped with a simple shielding unit. No armor whatsoever. His face was covered from below the nose in a black mask and blonde hair was covered by a black bandanna. He was carrying a Haenel RS9 sniper rifle. “Where’s the chip?”

“I don’t know…what you’re…talking about…” Jongin tried to say through his pained grimaces. The sniper aimed his rifle right at Jongin’s head.

“Give me the chip and I’ll let you live.”

“Fuck…you…” Jongin spat at him. The sniper sighed and was about to look down the scope when the sound of a ship’s engine began to roar overhead. Jongin looked up just as quickly as the sniper did and he saw it. The El Dorado passed overhead and a figure leapt out from the hatch. He remembered that armor anywhere. Kyungsoo slammed down to the earth with a heavy slam as his plated mech combat suit absorbed the near 100 foot drop’s impact on his knees. The sniper looked at Kyungsoo and Kyungsoo’s eyes could almost be seen from beneath the heavy visor of his helmet. A brief moment of silence passed over them before the sniper quickly began to run to the forest. Kyungsoo unloaded his K12 machine gun but the sniper focused his shielding to cover his retreat, and retreat he did into the darkness. Without a word, Kyungsoo grabbed Jongin and hurled him over his shoulder. Jongin let out a pained yowl as even the sealing gel wasn’t able to numb all agitation. Kyungsoo turned on his boosters in his boots and they flew up to the El Dorado. Jongin passed out before they reached the hatch.

Jongin awoke in the small room that they had turned into a medical bay after the injuries and doctor’s bills began to pile up with ever more dangerous jobs. He winced as he tried to sit up but instead felt a hand push him back down, firmly. He looked over to see Kyungsoo’s blank face staring at him. It always amazed Jongin how small Kyungsoo was when he saw him in his armor and then entirely out of his armor.

“Hey…” Jongin grimaced but he was cut off from saying anything else as Kyungsoo kissed him deeply. It was then that he could taste a slight saltiness in on Kyungsoo’s lips. When they finally pulled apart he saw Kyungsoo’s eyes were red as well. “You’ve…been crying…?”

“Shut up…” Kyungsoo said, a small crack in his voice as he ran his hands through Jongin’s hair. “Don’t you…EVER…scare me like that again…” Jongin let out a small chuckle that turned into a hiss of pain as he felt the wound.

“How’s it look?” he asked as he tried to see.

“The gels did their job and we there weren’t any bullet fragments to remove.”

“Was it a clean shot?” Jongin asked. Kyungsoo nodded.

“No broken bones and no organ damage. You’re going to be fine.”

“Lucky you,” Jongin jested as best he could despite the still evident pain. Kyungsoo only responded with another deep kiss. He let his hand scratch against Kyungsoo’s short hair. “I don’t think…I can do much…for a while…” Jongin managed to say through Kyungsoo’s needy kisses. Kyungsoo finally pulled away and allowed a small smile of his own.

“I don’t care. As long as I have you.” Jongin smiled at him and their fingers entwined together. He then scooted over on the bed and pulled Kyungsoo to join him. Despite the small nature of the bed and the slightly awkward positioning, Kyungsoo joined him and let his head rest just inches away from Jongin’s. They fell asleep shortly after.


	4. Shore Leave for Baekhyun and Chanyeol

The sounds of the bar nightlife resonated in Baekhyun’s ears as he emptied the remnants of the wine bottle into his glass. He pouted at the last few drops falling to ripple into the rich red liquid that half-filled his wine glass and then raised his eyes as heard a chuckle. Chanyeol was looking at him through a haze of cigarette smoke and smirked as the cigarette butt was pursed tightly between his lips. It had been almost two months since they’d taken an extended break at port and the last three days had seen Baekhyun barely leaving Chanyeol’s side. After the close call with Jongin’s infiltration mission they both agreed that Kyungsoo was close to his breaking point. So once they handed over the chip to the buyer, they quickly headed over to Port Umber and declared a two week break for healing and rest. EXO tended to the ship while the four of them rented two rooms and stayed with their partners. Now Baekhyun found himself staring down at the bottom of yet another empty wine bottle while Chanyeol was at the end of his whatever number cigarette.

“When are you going to stop smoking?” Baekhyun asked as he took a heavy sip of his wine, the alcohol flowing through his veins as smoothly as his blood.

“When are you going to stop drinking?” Chanyeol said back as he snubbed out his fourth cigarette of the evening into the metal ashtray at the table and exhaled the last of the smoke from his nostrils. Baekhyun didn’t want to bring up, yet again, his fears of the smoke causing cancer and once again hearing all of Chanyeol’s retorts to them but the alcohol made him as fearful as it made him happy.

“You…you just know…” Baekhyun started but stopped when he felt Chanyeol’s hand grab his own and squeeze it lightly. Despite the heavy influence of the wine, Baekhyun felt he truly looked at Chanyeol for the first time all evening. The locks of black hair that were gelled back to expose his adorable forehead and pronounced his large ears. His loose black silk button up that he’d chosen for the evening which he kept the top two buttons undone to allow a small glimpse to the canvas of tanned skin that was Chanyeol’s chest. He could clean up nicely when he didn’t have to wear that annoying dark blue boiler suit he insisted on wearing while piloting and living on the ship. It was also nice not seeing that irritating forearm computer that went from his wrist to his elbow. Sometimes he forgot there was a normal forearm under it when they got to shore. But now Chanyeol was here, with him, all to himself. Nothing could be more perfect for him. He let his head rest on his arm as he looked at Chanyeol, who returned the look, and smiled at him. “You really had a lot tonight,” Chanyeol jested as he looked at the empty wine bottle. “That makes two.”

“You had some.”

“I had a glass.” Baekhyun playfully bit the air and Chanyeol allowed him a small smirk. “We should get you back to the room or I’m going to have to carry you.”

“I’ll be fine,” Baekhyun said with a sigh as he forced himself to sit up straight and moved to stand up. Chanyeol let go of Baekhyun’s hand and quickly swiped his credit chit to pay for the drinks and watched Baekhyun suddenly sway as he got to his feet and fall back onto the chair he had been sitting in. “Ok…you may have to help me,” Baekhyun slurred in a quieter tone than before. Seemingly choosing to save face for Baekhyun, Chanyeol held out his hand and Baekhyun took it to help him to his feet. With one swift motion Chanyeol slung his arm around Baekhyun’s shoulders and held him close while functioning as a strong wall of support. Immediately Baekhyun was struck by the unique aroma of cigarette smoke, sweat, and cologne that defined his boyfriend. Immediately he wished they were in bed so he could just curl up to him and drown in that scent but they had a mission ahead.

“Come on, trigger fingers,” Chanyeol cooed gently into Baekhyun’s ears and they began to walk out of the bar and into the cool night air. Baekhyun realized, once outside, just how stifling and loud it was in the bar and found the combination of chill and silence to be almost romantic. All he could hear was the sound of Chanyeol’s breathing and their footsteps as they moved down the quiet city street. A few people passed by as Baekhyun stumbled along the path that Chanyeol’s strong arms guided him down but none seemed to give him any mind. All the better for it. “If you’re going to get this far gone why do you even bother bringing your pistols?” Chanyeol asked as he likely was feeling the grip of one of Baekhyun’s DP51’s poking into his side as Baekhyun leaned against him.

“Sorry…” was all Baekhyun could manage to say as he face began to flush red. It was true. He always complained about Chanyeol smoking but Baekhyun was just as bad, if not worse, when they reached port. It embarrassed him and almost made him feel ashamed. He brought the guns to protect them if anything were to happen but in his current state he wouldn’t be able to defend a puddle of water, let alone his boyfriend. It almost made him want to cry but his dignity is what kept him from doing so as they made their way down the street and finally reached their hotel. It was a small place, nothing fancy, but it had thick walls, large beds, and relatively cheap room service. They stepped into the elevator and when the door closed Chanyeol gently kissed the back of Baekhyun’s neck.

“Why are you so red?” Chanyeol asked quietly as the gentle hum of the elevator was the white noise that met Baekhyun’s ears.

“I shouldn’t have drank…this much…” Baekhyun whimpered and his voice almost sounded to be on the verge of tears. He knew he got emotional when he was drunk but he couldn’t help it. Chanyeol’s only firearm was his K7 submachine gun but that was always kept on the ship. If he and Chanyeol had been ambushed they would have been defenseless. That shamed Baekhyun and he clung to Chanyeol protectively and with great need as the elevator doors opened.

“It’s fine, Baek,” Chanyeol said in as comforting a tone as he could deliver as he tried to help Baekhyun towards their room. The alcohol seemed to be taking full effect as Baekhyun required more and more of Chanyeol’s weight to support himself during their trip. Finally, they reached the door to their room and Chanyeol fumbled out the key to open it. Once the door was open he helped Baekhyun inside and immediately closed and locked the door before bringing Baekhyun to the bed to sit. Baekhyun’s recently dyed blonde hair swayed as he did and Chanyeol knelt down in front of him as he looked straight into Baekhyun’s eyes. The tears had finally started to well but Chanyeol’s lips were on his within moments. Baekhyun felt Chanyeol’s hand hold him by the back of the neck to both support him and comfort him and Baekhyun melted into the kiss. A small trail of tears fell from his eyes and down his cheeks as the kiss continued. There was no rush and no force. It simply lingered in the comforting tone that Baekhyun was sure Chanyeol knew was what he needed. And it helped. When they finally pulled away from each other, the tears had begun to dry on his cheeks and he gave a weak smile as he tried to wipe his eyes with the back of his sleeve. Without a word, Chanyeol helped Baekhyun remove his suit jacket. His dark blue dress shirt pronounced the dark leather of his shoulder holsters, each with a loaded DP51. Chanyeol removed the pistols and unloaded them before placing them on the night table by the bed. Baekhyun sniffed as he tried to get out of his holsters but his hands wouldn’t work so Chanyeol helped him take them off and tossed it to the floor. Chanyeol then, with great care, untied and removed the black leather shoes that Baekhyun had chosen to wear and tossed them away before removing his black socks. They were warm and Chanyeol gently massaged them to get the blood flowing back into them after such a long night. Baekhyun whimpered as the sensation rang through his whole body and he saw Chanyeol look up at him before giving a small smile.

“Hi…” Baekhyun whispered with a slightly cracked voice before he gave a weak laugh.

“Hi,” Chanyeol said with his own smile still glowing in the dull light of the lone lamp and proceeded to do the same ritual to Baekhyun’s other foot. Once both feet were free he undid the buttons to Baekhyun’s shirt and removed it. Baekhyun could never understand how such large and calloused hands could be so gentle and emotive of Chanyeol’s compassion with such simple actions but even when Chanyeol unlatched his belt, slid it out, and removed them, there wasn’t a single sense of urgency or lust in the movements. Once Baekhyun was down to his briefs, Chanyeol stood up and began to remove his own clothes without any rush. Baekhyun watched him as best he could with his vision beginning to spin. But what his imbibed eyes were unable to see he soon felt as Chanyeol crawled into bed with him and held him close.

“Channy…” Baekhyun whimpered as he nuzzled into Chanyeol’s chest and Chanyeol planted small kisses on the top of Baekhyun’s head. He pulled the blankets over the two of them and held Baekhyun tightly in his arms.

“Baekkie,” his whispered back.


End file.
